Latino Center focused on education, health care and technology

Latinos in San Diego County face challenges with access to quality education, health care and technology and suffer from low political participation, according to a study released Wednesday by the National Latino Research Center based at Cal State San Marcos.

The center issued the report during its first conference focused on Latinos in this region. More than 120 people attended the event, which was titled “Latinos in San Diego County: Understanding the Contributions and Challenges of Families in 2012 and Beyond.”

“We are at a moment where critical decisions have to be made given budgeting situations,” said Arcela Nuñez-Alvarez, director of the center. “We have to figure out how to fund ways to support the work that is going to make a difference.”

She and other researchers said education, health care and technology matter because they affect not only Latinos right now but also will impact the larger San Diego population in years to come. For example, the greater workforce would be ill-prepared for global competition if many Latino students fail to graduate from schools, have limited access to the latest technology or lack preventive health care.

Education drew a large crowd when conference-groers broke into topic-related session. According to the report a high percentage of Latino students are not graduating, are being expelled or are being send to alternative schools. Those who do graduate are often not prepared or qualified for college.

“There is a huge disconnect,” Nuñez-Alvarez said. “The ramifications of not reversing the trends - in education, access to health care, access to technology - are huge for our community in the future.”

One of the most surprising findings, said Nuñez-Alvarez, was that middle-class, educated Latinos are more disconnected from the political and civic process than expected in North County.

The North County area lacks community groups that work to involve residents in civic engagement, the report said, which is a large factor for the lack of participation.

The NLCR was opened in 1998 with the mission of “promoting research, training, and the exchange of information related to Latino and under-served populations in the United States.” The Center has hosted various events in the past but this was the first conference focused on the both the demographic overview as well as four critical issues.